APP Halts All Natural Forest Clearance

The Asia Pulp & Paper Group (APP) has put an end to clearing natural forests in Indonesia, which applies to all suppliers.

Feb 06, 2013

Beginning on Feb. 1, all of APP’s suppliers have suspended natural forest clearance while independent assessments take place to identify areas of high conservation value that will be protected through a long-term management program.

“This is a major commitment and investment from APP Group. We are doing this for the sustainability of our business and for the benefit of society. We hope our stakeholders will support our new Policy, help us along the way, and urge other industry players to follow,” said Mr. Teguh Ganda Wijaya, Chairman of the APP Group.

High Carbon Stock (HCS) assessments undertaken by The Forest Trust (TFT) will identify all forested areas, enabling APP to ensure that future plantation development does not take place in forests. APP also announced that the new Forest Conservation Policy is now available as part of the quarterly update of‘Vision 2020’ Sustainability Roadmap.

Initially the APP Sustainability Roadmap set out a plan to implement High Conservation Value Forest (HCVF) principles and end natural forest clearance across its entire supply chain, by 2015. APP’s latest announcement means that the objective has been accelerated by almost two years.

“APP’s shift towards a policy of No Deforestation is hugely significant. As the largest forest product business in an extremely sensitive area, APP is now in a position of leadership, a stunning reversal in light of its past reputation,” said Scott Poynton, executive director of TFT. “The new APP Forest Conservation Policy de-links the company from natural forest destruction and recognises the rights of indigenous and local communities. In so doing APP has set a benchmark for others to follow. There is of course a lot of work to do to implement the policy in its entirety and to put in place the necessary controls and monitoring processes. The leaders of APP recognise this and we will work alongside them to make this happen.”